The invention lies in the field of appliances. The invention relates to a device for monitoring the functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance.
Rotating liquid-discharging appliances may be, for example, lawn sprinklers or spray arms of a dishwashing machine, etc. Should there be a fault in the functioning of such an appliance, for example, should it come to a stop, decreases efficiency and results. In the case of a fault with lawn sprinklers, a limited area of the lawn to be sprinkled is sprinkled with an unnecessarily large quantity of water and the rest of the lawn area is not sprinkled at all, thus, killing off the lawn because of over watering, on one hand, and because of no watering, on the other hand. With respect to such a fault with spray arms of dishwashing machines, the batch to be cleaned may be acted upon unevenly by cleaning liquid, thus, leading to an inadequate cleaning result. However, should such a functional fault of an appliance cause no liquid to be discharged, in lawn sprinklers this, of course, also leads to the lawn being killed off because of no watering and, in the case of spray arms of dishwashing machines, leads, of course, to no cleaning result at all because the batch to be cleaned is not acted upon by cleaning liquid (the cleaning liquid carrying out essentially all of the cleaning).
German Published, Non-Prosecuted Patent Application DE-OS 37 32 451 discloses, for example, a monitoring device for the rotational movement of a spray arm of a dishwashing machine. The device checks only the rotational movement of the spray arm. It does not check the discharge of the liquid.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a device for monitoring the functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance that overcomes the hereinafore-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known devices of this general type and that provides, in a simple way, a device that monitors the entire functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance.
With the foregoing and other objects in view, there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a device for monitoring a functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance, including at least one collection device defining a collection chamber having at least one inlet with a given cross-section, at least one outlet with a cross-section smaller than the given cross-section, and an interior fluidically connected to the inlet and to the outlet. The monitoring device having at least one level sensor fluidically connected to the interior and being disposed approximately in a region acted upon with liquid by the appliance to be monitored. The level sensor produces a signal to be evaluated by an evaluation device.
In the event of the fault-free rotation of the liquid-discharge appliance and in the event of the fault-free discharge of liquid, in the device according to the invention, the collecting chamber is filled with the liquid through the inlet orifice and is emptied again through the outlet orifice so that the sensor detects a constantly fluctuating filling level in the collecting chamber. The evaluation apparatus can interpret the fluctuation in a simple way as the satisfactory functioning of the liquid-discharging appliance. Should rotation and/or the discharge of liquid not take place, whether the collecting chamber is acted upon or not, the sensor does not detect a constantly fluctuating filling level in the collecting chamber, which is then interpreted by the evaluation apparatus in a simple way as a functional fault of the liquid-discharging appliance. When the collecting chamber is not acted upon with liquid, for example, when the appliance to be monitored is at a standstill or in the absence of the discharge of liquid, the sensor detects a constantly empty collecting chamber. However, should the collecting chamber be acted upon constantly with liquid, with the appliance to be monitored being at a standstill, the sensor detects a constantly fully filled collecting chamber. At all events, in both instances, no constantly fluctuating filling level is measured, so that the evaluation apparatus detects in a simple way a functional fault of the liquid-discharging appliance. The invention provides in a simple way a device by which the entire functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance can be monitored.
In accordance with another feature of the invention, the cross-section of the inlet orifice and of the outlet orifice and also the volume of the collecting chamber are dimensioned such that, under normal functioning conditions of the appliance to be monitored, the liquid level in the collecting chamber oscillates periodically about a predetermined reference level. By such a measure, the device according to the invention becomes even more functionally reliable because a periodically oscillating liquid level can be evaluated even more easily.
In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the level sensor is an optical sensor, thus, achieving a simplification in the detection of the level in the collecting chamber.
In accordance with an added feature of the invention, the sensor part of the optical sensor is a V-angle shape of a substantially transparent vertical wall of the collecting chamber, the V-angle shape projecting with the vertex into the interior wall of the collecting chamber. When these optical sensors, normally referred to as immersion rods with light refraction, are used for liquid-level measurement, the device according to the invention becomes even more functionally reliable.
In accordance with an additional feature of the invention, the sensor part is the V-shaped portion of the vertical wall.
In accordance with yet another feature of the invention, the inlet is fluidically connected to the region acted upon with liquid.
With the objects of the invention in view, in a dishwashing machine having an evaluation device and at least one rotating spray arm spraying washing liquid at least at a region in the machine, there is also provided a device for monitoring a functioning of the spray arm including at least one collection device defining a collection chamber having at least one inlet with a given cross-section, at least one outlet with a cross-section smaller than the given cross-section, and an interior fluidically connected to the inlet and to the outlet, having at least one level sensor fluidically connected to the interior, the level sensor producing a signal evaluated by the evaluation device, and being disposed approximately at the region in the machine.
In accordance with yet a further feature of the invention, the device is disposed in a dishwashing machine for monitoring the functioning of at least one rotating spray arm spraying washing liquid, with the result that the reliable cleaning action of the dishwashing machine is ensured in a simple way.
In accordance with yet an added feature of the invention, advantageously, the device is disposed in a side wall of the dishwashing machine, thus, achieving a simplification in the installation of the device according to the invention.
In accordance with yet an additional feature of the invention, the device is disposed in a door of the dishwashing machine. The largest possible variety of assemblies is normally installed in the door of the dishwashing machine, so that the installation of a further assembly does not signify any particularly high outlay.
In accordance with again another feature of the invention, the device is disposed in a cleaning-agent dispensing unit. By being installed in an assembly that is already present in a dishwashing machine, it is possible for the device according to the invention to be installed in the dishwashing machine without any further outlay.
In accordance with again a further feature of the invention, in the event of a fault, the signals from the level sensor lead, through the evaluation apparatus, to a change in the control and/or to the interruption of a program cycle and/or to the activation of an optical and/or acoustic warning signal, with the result that impairments of a cleaning result due to the malfunctioning of the spray arm can be avoided as far as possible.
With the objects of the invention in view, in an appliance having an evaluation device and a rotating liquid-discharging device spraying washing liquid at least at a region in the appliance, there is also provided a device for monitoring a functioning of the rotating liquid-discharging device including at least one collection device defining a collection chamber having at least one inlet with a given cross-section, at least one outlet with a cross-section smaller than the given cross-section, and an interior fluidically connected to the inlet and to the outlet, having at least one level sensor fluidically connected to the interior, the level sensor producing a signal evaluated by the evaluation device, and being disposed approximately at the region in the appliance.
With the objects of the invention in view, in combination with an appliance having an evaluation device and a rotating liquid-discharging device spraying washing liquid at least at a region in the appliance, there is also provided a device for monitoring a functioning of the rotating liquid-discharging device, the monitoring device including at least one collection device defining a collection chamber having at least one inlet with a given cross-section, at least one outlet with a cross-section smaller than the given cross-section, and an interior fluidically connected to the inlet and to the outlet, having at least one level sensor fluidically connected to the interior, the level sensor producing a signal evaluated by the evaluation device, and being disposed approximately at the region in the appliance.
Other features that are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a device for monitoring the functioning of a rotating liquid-discharging appliance, it is, nevertheless, not intended to be limited to the details shown because various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.
The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.